SIMPLE SOLUTIONS FOR BUSY BUSINESSES & BLOGGERS

One of the main questions that bloggers have is what should I blog about? There are many answers to this question, too many to answer in this one blog post but one thing you can do as a blogger is blog about the events that you attend.

There are so many different angles you could blog about from just attending an event. Let’s say you go to a business event with a particular theme. You could write about something the speakers said. You could create a discussion around the key themes of the event. You could interview fellow delegates and create some videos for your blog. Perhaps you could create a review of the event.

If you are running a business, you will probably be aware of business events or events relevant to your niche. Often a business owners we think that we don’t have the time to attend these events, but actually they can be a source of great networking, new contacts, potential new business and if you capture the right information a source of content for your blog for a long time to come.

This week I have attended 2 events. The first was an event Celebrating Women in Business. It was a great event with the right mix of networking, exhibition stands and seminars. I met some really amazing businesses and women doing some really inspirational things. The takeaway for me was the way that women help one another out.

One of the main themes was about finding what you love and doing more of that. Hopefully being able to take that passion and turning it in to a business.

The second event was much bigger. It had lots of trade stands seminars, panels and lots of networking. This event was much more formal and because of the size of the event you were at times made to mingle and network. I met some really interesting businesses and contacts and it was great to have conversations with people that I probably wouldn’t normally network with.

The whole day got me thinking about how to make the most of these events, especially if you are a blogger. So below I set out my top 5 tips to make the most of networking events and maximising your chance of being able to create some great content after!

1. Listen at Events

Many people make the mistake of thinking that events are all about selling and generating as many leads as possible. However if this is the approach you take you will miss some of the most exciting takeaways. Be open and receptive to everything that is around you. Ask questions of the people that you meet and be genuinely interested in others. Listen intently at the seminars and to what the speakers say. You will often ear some golden nuggets that you can use in a piece of content; but importantly a piece of information that will help take your business to the next level.

2. Be Authentic

Although seemingly obvious – often, when we meet people for the first time; we might overcompensate on certain aspects of our business or our personalities because we want people to really like us and our business. I personally find networking events quite tiring. That’s because I am naturally more of an introvert than an extrovert, getting my energy from quiet and solitude. Networking events are incredibly busy and stimulating and often suck the life out of me, even though I really enjoy them. But I find just being me helps me. By this I mean just going with the flow, if I feel myself getting tired I go get a drink or head to toilet for 5 mins to take a breather. If I find someone I really resonate with however, I will just allow myself to open up and get to know them – and them me!

3. What are the themes

This comes back to listening, but also to observing what is going on around you. What did you get out of the day. What did you learn. What did you feel. Was it what someone said, was it an inspiring story someone told. Was it the way that the event was run. Was it the fact that something at the event inspired you to do something different or make a huge leap of faith. They say success leaves clues. What clues are you identifying at the events you attend?

4. Connect the dots

This is something I really love to do. I find that I do it without thinking, but it’s incredibly rewarding and so I try to make a really conscious effort to do this to the best of my ability. So What am I talking about. The beauty of events is that you will undoubtedly meet people that are trying to achieve something, or learn something or find something or someone. If you visit every trade stand or as many as is possible and then you network with other businesses and ask them about themselves. They will tell you what they are tyring to do. If you have paid attention to the people you have already met you will be able to point them in the right direction and connect them with others. And for this, people will be very grateful.

5. Seek out the movers and shakers

Normally at events you will meet businesses and people who just make you go wow! It could be that they were one of the speakers and they said something that really made you think. Or it could be a new business that you just know is going to be massive and make a really great impact in the world. When this happens, don’t be afraid to reach out to them. Tell them what you like about them. Ask them if they would be willing to be interviewed or perhaps ask them if you could do a review of their product or service. Now imagine if you were one of the first people to spot them as an emerging entrepreneur!

So there you have it. A post about creating valuable content following the events that you attend and how to maiximse you success whilst attending them.

What was the last event that you attended. Do you prepare yourself to create content either whilst you are there or afterwards. Do you prefer to make video content or write about your experiences? I’d be interested to hear about how you find events and what you biggest takeaways have been. If you have enjoyed this post please share with your friend and followers and leave me a comment in the section below.

To Your Simple Blogging Success.

Beth Hewitt

Blogging since 2009 and passionate about blogging, personal development, marketing and helping others succeed. In 2012 I founded the Simple Blogging Network because I was tired of seeing intelligent, talented bloggers getting disillusioned and frustrated because they never made a dime online. I aim to cut down the learning curve for bloggers new and old, simplifying all aspects of blogging and helping great bloggers get the recognition they deserve.

24 Comments

Great advice Beth – but WOW it is really hard to write using white text! Another tip that might help your readers is to set up a clip file to organize the information gathered through the types of strategies you outlined. Some use Evernote, I have my own system, but the point is it’s really easy for me to access my idea file and right now there are probably 100 different ideas on posts. Makes a big difference.

Great to see you here on mu blog again. Sorry that you had to write In white text. I didn’t realise it was doing that. I just checked and it was white text on a black background. Did it look different too you? Thank you for your comment about evernote. It’s always good to have the ability to store and access inspiration when you need it.

I attend something local monthly.
Get out of town three four times a year to “live training” or a compnany event.
Keeps me in touch broad cross section of people, face to face to learrn what they want.
Keeping it social and being interested in them makes it easier to connect later onlne.

Hey, Beth. Thank you for the tips. The comment section is white on white so very hard to see. I told myself recently go to some events to get some fresh ideas for my post. Thank you for your suggestions

Hi BethThis is my first visit to your blog. Really loved reading your post. This is something we all struggle with – what to write about? You have shared some great advise with us here. Thanks for sharing!

Hi Beth. Unfortunately, I\’m not the sort to attend these events, so I have to get my ideas elsewhere. I find it\’s not the topics that are hard to come up with but writing something different about them to what\’s been done before.

Hi Beth ,
where I live there are no events near I could go to,
only maybe on the internet.
But I can imagine that is very interesting to meet
people and talk about business and blogging .
A good way to know what to write about.
Thank you
Erika

Hi Beth,
Wonderful to see you picking up the pace in your renewed blogging journey.. I’m going to add one .. “Become your own mover and shaker” there are so many positive benefits from being the one people go to for answers. All the suggestions you have shared are excellent! You have to learn, you have to LISTEN to the experiences of others, grasp what makes sense to you, and create your own path. I believe anyone can be a influencer over time 🙂

Good to see you back, Beth! Yes, events are amazing opportunities. I’ve been to a few, mostly Internet Marketing related and it’s so good to put faces to names (real faces, not avatars!) I love the post and love the list of ways you can write about an event. I always found after an event I was writing several blog posts on it afterwards. There just always seems to be something else to say! Hope you are ok and doing well!

I tend to shy away from events because I’m not very good in crowds. But you’ve got me thinking maybe I should venture out a little more often and see what happens. Just putting my foot in the door would be enough for a blog post for me. 🙂

Hi Ruth, if you are unsure, find smaller networking events, or maybe take a friend with you. There are some big events which can be very daunting if you aren’t used to them. But there are so many really supportive groups as well. 🙂 Please let me know how you get on. I’m going to check out your website. Just wondered if you were currently a member of the Simple Blogging Network group? It’s free to join. https://simplebloggingnetwork.com/join-the-community